Settling into my cabin on the M/V Athena, I as surprised that it is larger than expected and quite comfortable. I thought the 50-passenger M/V Athena might have smaller rooms but this is plenty roomy for two. Since I am traveling alone, I feel a bit pampered with the extra space.

My bed is two twin beds that can be joined or not. On each side of the bed is a nightstand with two drawers, a bottom shelf and a lamp. One nightstand also has a telephone and clock. A small round circular table has two chairs, an ice bucket, two glasses and a basket of fruit.

Across from the bed is the good-sized bathroom with a walk-in shower, commode and sink with a shelf underneath. Grand Circle has its own line of toiletries arranged in a bathroom basket. The shower also has a dispenser for shampoo and body wash. I like that because there is less waste. I don’t know how many bars of soap or opened bottles of shampoo and body wash I have discarded when heading home from a trip.

Next to the bathroom is a closet with plenty of hangers, three drawers and a safe. Doubt if it is true but program director Antun Maticevic told us a tale about a passenger with a complaint a couple of years ago.

“Steam was coming out of her ears she was so mad,” Antun said. “She said her microwave wouldn’t work. I thought that was strange since our ship cabins don’t have microwaves. So I went there to see what was the problem. I saw she had put a cup of coffee in the safe to heat it up.”

Now that I think of it, that might be true. I’m sure Antun and other tour leaders could probably write a book about goofy things passengers have said and done.

Anyway, next to the closet is a desk with a push-in hassock under it and a flat screen TV over it. A hair dryer is in one of the desk drawers. A large sliding glass door leads to my outside balcony with two chairs and a table. I plan to spend considerable time out there watching the sea as we cruise. A porthole window and the sliding glass doors both have heavy curtains to block out the sun but I don’t think that will be necessary. Our tours will be starting early each day.

My cabin has half-paneled walls, a paneled ceiling and a maroon décor. The M/V Athena was built in 2007 by Grand Circle to sail the Dalmatian Coast and the ship’s ambiance reflects that. Grand Circle had a photographer go to countries we will be visiting to capture scenes of everyday life. Those black-and-white photos are enjoyed throughout the ship, including three in my cabin with soft lights over them.

The cabin has both American electrical outlets and Western Europe outlets. I always carry two plug adapters in my suitcase so this should be plenty of outlets for all my gadgets. Each cabin has individual air conditioning and heat controls.

Free WiFi is available throughout the ship. That is something passengers requested, Antun said. Think I see a definite pattern here: Passengers ask and Grand Circle listens.

Antun has already warned us that we will receive a long survey to complete when we get home. The feedback is valuable for future cruises and is definitely worth the time to fill out, he said, because suggestions are considered and changes are made.

Story and photo by Jackie Sheckler Finch